mirror.co.uk

Atos - how much grief can one company cause?

We have had a heart-rending response to our revelation that at least 32 people
are dying each week despite them being ruled not sick enough in the medical test for the new incapacity benefit.

Employment and Support Allowance claimants died after a "work capability assessment" concluded that they were able to get a job and only entitled to a lower rate of benefit.

Among them was 36-year-old Martina Delaney from Bolton. In November the private firm Atos, on a £100million government contract, deemed her fit for work and her benefits were cut.

"She was so worried about losing her flat and she had to sell the family jewellery to pay for the gas and food and never even told us, it would have broken her heart," said her mother Elizabeth. "We found our beautiful girl in her bed on March 12.

"She suffered from high blood pressure, numerous allergies and long-term depression, there is no way she was fit for work."

Another shocking story came from Citizens Advice which told of a warehouse worker whose degenerative lung condition forced him to give up work.

"His weight had dropped to just seven stone, he had trouble breathing and walking," said a CAB spokeswoman.

"But in the medical test for Employment and Support Allowance he was awarded zero points and was told that he would be fit to return to work within three months. Before three months was up he died."

Then there was the woman of 50 with terminal cancer, who we've been asked not to name.

This lady got a letter from the Department for Work and Pensions saying that following her medical test she was found fit for work and was told by a "back to work adviser" to attend some gym sessions.

"There has got to be a better way to assess people as to whether they are fit for work or not," said Natasha, her support worker from a Midlands charity.

Atos - where the boss Keith Wilman gets £800,000 a year - has been widely slated for the quality of its medical assessment.

Just last week the company was condemned by the Advertising Standards Authority for claiming that it has got "1700+ healthcare professionals". Such is the arrogance of this firm that it didn't even bothering responding to the ASA, which is the kind of behaviour we usually see in fly-by-night conmen, not huge companies trusted by the government with such important matters as this.

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Jane said:

I have been reading that now it has started eating into the time of medical professionals, having to write reports to back up people's ESA Appeals, the GMC have finally written to the Government clueless stating their growing concern that ATOS staff seem to be declaring an alarmingly worrying number of people fit to work, when they are clearly not.
It seems that every professional body & expert & welfare organisations are shouting at the tops of their voices that this system is clearly not fit for purpose, but the Camerclown is ignoring every 1 of them.Why are all these professional bodies not banding together to fight this?

Stories such as the 1 you highlighted & hundreds more) - people with terminal brain tumours being declared fit for work by an ATOS employed midwife, someone who's had a stroke, is paralysed down 1 side, can't write or speak being declared fit for work, whilst millionaire MP's gorge their fat bloated greedy faces on 5.8 million pounds worth of subsidised food & booze on the tax payer.

WHY IS NO ONE FIGHTING FOR THESE PEOPLE? IS IT BECAUSE, UNLIKE ANCIENT FORESTS IN THREAT OF BEING SOLD, THERE'S NOT A BAND OF STARS WITH BIG NAMES WILLING TO FIGHT THIS CAUSE FOR PEOPLE WHO ARE DISABLED THROUGH ILLNES/DISEASE OR ACCIDENT WHICH COULD HAPPEN TO ANY OF US AT ANY TIME.

David Cameron a multi millionaire claimed benefits for his disabled son - now if that's not the perfect example of a benefit scrounger, I don't know what is.

I've been so happy to read your pieces, because I had felt we were screaming into the void.
I have collated many, many 'heart-rending stories'via Disabled People Against the Cuts and others. And I wrote to the Mirror suggesting they could start a campaign and I could feed them such stories, but got no response. I have now started a petition on Avaaz (Stop Stealing Disabled Peoples' Benefits) which got 250 signatures within 6 hours.
Please carry on helping us any way you can.

Thank you for following this up, I was found fit for work in late 2010 - I failed the WCA by 3 points. I was so worried about trying to find a job - I opted for self employment.
It was an unmitigated disaster.

I was so unwell i had to end the contract, it put such a strian on my health I am now significantly worse, i will never get back to were i was which was bad enough. I wasnt fit for work then, and now im in the support grp.

I dont just blame ATOS though - my anger is reserved for DWP they gave the contract,t hey manage the contract and ATOS have not once been fined for its terrible practise and its the DWP who decide who gets asesses time and time again.

I've just been told that my illness doesn't qualify me as it's hasn't lasted over one year, check your records you have done two previous assessments and I've been living on morphine for 5yrs to cope with pain. I have had a four hr surgery 3mths ago to help treat me but according to them I am now cured.

Apart from Sonia Poulton from the Mail this is THE only media voice that is shouting out the horror of Atos and the DWP. PEOPLE ARE DYING !!!!!!!!!!!! They are not scroungers, they are seriously ill people and many have worked all thier lives. We are the most vulnerable people in society, and we are fighting this ALONE. If this amount of suicide and death were to happen in ANY other group in this country it would be splashed across the TV, newspapers etc etc, Cameron and Greyling are evil, nasty, greedy men, THEY HAVE TO BE STOPPED. I know 2 people who have killed themselves because of the hopelesness of the situation. Cameron & Co. have blood on their dirty, grabbing hands. Where are the students, the unions, the rank and file, te british public, I'll tell you where they are, NOWHERE TO BE SEEN, because it is being kept quiet. STOP THIS NOW !!!!!!!!!!

Please sign and support Pat’s Petition which calls for the government to "Stop and review the cuts to benefits and services which are falling disproportionately on disabled people, their carers and families". The link is here
http://epetitions.direct.gov.uk/petitions/20968

Its hard to believe in what is supposed to be a democratic society that ill & disabled people are being treated like this. Its inhumane what the Government, DWP & so called Atos medical professionals are doing to the vulnerable.
I too have suffered from mental problems for over 7 years & Atos in their wisdom pronounced at my last assessment in December that i was fit for work within 3 months?? They have now called me in (only 3 months later) for another assessment. This must be my miracle cure??
Its obvious that the ill/disabled most vulnerable members of society are paying the price for the recession.

There is a minority of support for disabled and severely ill people, but there is a huge amount of government spin about people on benefits being "Malingerer's, Workshy,Scroungers" only too often we see right wing press like the "Daily Mail, Telegraph" etc being obviously briefed by government against those vulnerable members of society.

We have all seen the tales of benefit cheats who've been caught water skiing whilst claiming disability benefit's, the government uses these stories to make the wider public hate benefit claimants.

The real truth about benefit fraud is that it runs at approx 0.005%, a tiny amount compared to tax fraud.

It's easier for the government to attack people on benefits than to go after the real cheats and fraudsters in our society, slapping the banks on the wrist has done nothing, they still get bailed out by OUR money, they never lose anything.

This is a cross party thing, all the political parties are as guilty as each other over this, New Labour brought us the likes of Atos, we also have conservative and Labour politicians consorting with fraudulent companies like Unum, they were prosecuted in the USA for being disability deniers and had to pay out millions in compensation.

Unum also advised both governments on welfare reform, when asked asbout this both parties clam up.

When the bodies start piling up, and they will, maybe we shall see a politician with balls who will stand up and say enough is enough, I doubt it though.

The government is using an old ideology, that of Eugenics, laugh if you will but it's true, just wait till they come for you???

DWP!!! They still haven't processed my renewal forms even though they promised, that because of the welfare rights officer being delayed filling them in, they would be treated as urgent... Lies, lies and politicians! My DLA went up this week and runs out next week... So, from next week I will have approx. £65 a week to live on... When the call centre drone eventually answered my call she asked for my date of birth, which, I gave even thinking at that point it should have been date of supposed death. My forms are at the bottom of a 'decision maker's' pile with no way of getting them processed any quicker unless I'm terminally ill. I AM, we all are!!! I might not have a bloomin' date yet but hey, it don't matter to them... So, from next week I'm losing all my DLA and the disability component of ESA. But 'don't worry' she said, 'we'll backdate your benefit'... Hey said I 'how am I going to pay my bills, buy food etc...?' But I answered my own question before she could answer 'the dead don't need to eat'...

If the ConDem government seem so intent on destroying the social security system to protect the sick, I'm extremely pessimistic that they won't also obliterate public healthcare for the sick as well within the next few years.

Those vulnerable people and the surviving relatives of the people who've committed suicide as a result of these assessments need to report these so-called Doctors to the Medical Ethics Committee and to the General Medical Council - these Doctors are clearly failing in their duty of care and frankly they have a case to answer as to why they shouldn't be stuck off. A few lawyers with expertise in human rights abuses and a few Court cases and the resultant publicity might, just might force the Govt. and DWP to rethink what they're doing.

For over a year now I have been telling people over an over again down twitter and facebook that they need to collectivly come together to take legal action under human rights over this, I wish people would get together and do this as they are breaking the law, people are dieing, dieing due to the wca and dieing due to the impacted fuel poverty the sanctions and loss of help and benefits causes. stand up people and fight back for gods sake

@ ATOS Victims Group - good point about the people this Government DON'T pursue.

The sick, weak and disabled are an easy target. Far easier to persecute them than corporate tax evaders and banks and other businesses that award obscene bonuses for failure.

What worries me is that it will take real, deep, root-and-branch political reform to really change anything. Revolution is a frightening concept, but I fear that will be what it needs to bring an end to this barbaric system of government that persecutes the most vulnerable while rewarding the wealthy and powerful.

I have been put into the ‘Work Related Activity Group’ and will have to attend mandatory sessions required by the DWP, supposedly to prepare me to get back to work. I have had Multiple Sclerosis for many years and it causes me so many problems and difficulties, one of which relates to bowel control. If I don’t get to a toilet in under 30 seconds I lose control and as a result have faeces running down my legs. Any decent human being would understand that this is very limiting on what I can do, and incredibly distressing and embarrassing as well. However the Atos assessment (by a nurse) concluded my loss of bowel control was “unlikely” to happen, even though I submitted a Hospital Consultant’s report which confirmed that I have this problem. I’m going to submit an appeal, and I’ve just heard that the Appeal Tribunals are open to the public, so they are going to subject me to public humiliation and degradation on top of everything else. The deliberate cruelty of this process is beyond belief. No wonder people are dying as a result of the stress and deprivation being inflicted on them. Many, many more people are going to be driven to suicide by this. The Government won’t be shamed by this – they’ll just spout the same old weasel words. I believe that they are secretly pleased that this is killing off so many sick and disabled people because that will reduce the Welfare Bill. We are such easy targets because so many of us have an exhausting battle just to deal with daily life and we don’t have the strength to fight any more.

I went through all this the last time we had a Conservative government and I can't believe they have been elected again. Last time I was lucky enough to be married with a husband who could support me - I gave up claiming after a medical which was so brutal it left me with severe pain for months and caused me severe panic attacks for the first time in my life. It was sheer nasty bullying, but more than that it was extremely rough physical handling of someone who had severe pain. I complained but was told it was a 'normal medical'. This time around I am on my own, have struggled ever since my marriage ended, have desperately tried to find ways to earn so I didn't have to go through any more bullying, medicals and fear of losing income, but haven't managed it. I am 53 years old now - I was hoping I could get through one more set of processes to keep my benefits until I retired at 60, as my assessments were only every five years on Incapacity Benefits. But guess what. My retirement age has now been put back to 66! And ESA is not awarded for five years at a time I am told.

I can't face going through it again, but at 53 I have learned enough of life to know that I nothing is worth killing yourself over. I would rather live with shame - and go to prison if necessary - that way you get a roof over your head and food at least.

Brave talk maybe - but if, like most disabled people, you are honest, upstanding people with integrity, you would rather die than commit a crime.

People say - why don't we all get together? Well because it's like the blind leading the blind - we just don't have the energy or the resources - which is why we are a targeted group - we can't fight back. I'm sorry but petitions aren't going to make any difference with an established government body of ruthless exterminators who can all pass the buck to someone else.

Yes it is eugenics - and an inbuilt belief that people are 'born' to be superior to others. How on earth anyone could vote for a millionaire for Prime Minister I have no idea. Obviously he has no idea and never has had, what it is like to be homeless, penniless and starving, through no fault of your own, but through being struck down with disability. The irony being - they cause a lot of it. My disability was caused by the bullying working practices and removal of employment rights under the Thatcher government. Nothing changes - different faces - same policies - just disguised under a cloak of sound bites and Mr Cameron riding a bicycle and trying to come across as touchy feely.

To get to the point - maybe we can't get together to fight this (especially when we are being knocked for six by bombardments over assessment demands and fears) - but could someone out there, please take this to the court of human rights in Europe.

We have a human right to be assessed or examined, in a reasonable and humane manner, by a qualified medical expert of our own choice, who is not employed by the government.

After my bullying medical in the 1990's that left me in bed for 9 months, I was so terrified of Doctors afterwards I wouldn't let anyone go near me or touch me again. I wouldn't even go to the Doctors or let anyone touch me to have my blood pressure taken. This might sound irrational but I was totally traumatised. Eventually I became very ill with another condition and had to see a GP to get a referral to a specialist - I changed my GP, after getting a number of recommendations and found one I could work with. She couldn't help much - she wrote letters for me when I had to go for medicals (after my marriage ended I was forced to claim incapacity benefit again - I should have been getting further benefits but couldn't face the rigorous medicals) - but it made no difference. She was good though - and she talked me through the fear of Doctors and explained simply - Doctors who are employed to do these assessments are not the same people as Doctors who are there to help you with your pain. They get paid extra to do this job. Too right - they had sold out.

That's how bad it was then - now? I have lived in fear for the past year, of my assessment coming up - I have felt suicidal a number of times. I'm sure my terror is the same as that of many - trapped between the fear of losing the little bit of income you have, or the fear of going through the process that makes you feel so worthless you want to die - and then having your benefit stopped anyway - and the stress of having to try and appeal and go through more processes and being treated like a criminal - when you are ill (worse than you were before by then) and can't afford to eat every day.

This affects people across the board - disability is classless.

So please - someone - take it to the European courts - it must be illegal.

We have a right:

1) To a benefit due to being unable to work through illness or disability.

2) A right to have an expert medical diagnosis and a Doctor's report accepted for the purposes of claiming sickness and disability benefits.

3) A right to be treated with respect, spoken to with respect, and not to receive written communications containing threatening tones.

4) A right to continued benefits should we disagree with a decision made by the authorities, until that appeal has been dealt with.

5) A right to be awarded damages against the government, should a decision be overturned at appeal.

6) A right to be safe, mentally and physically.

Also, Doctors (Consultants and Specialists in particular) have a right not to be threatened with having their funding removed if they diagnose any further cases of a particular condition. (This happened in the 1990's with various industrial injury cases, meaning it became almost impossible to find anyone to give you a diagnosis.

If there any sceptics reading this - just remember - it could be you. Anyone can become disabled and unable to work, overnight. But the worst thing about all this is, it is not just about being unable to work - even then your needs are greater than those who ARE fit to work. Everything costs more - you may need to pay for help, or costs increase because it takes so long to do something, or need a special diet which is expensive, or need to make adaptations to your home (if you have somewhere to live), your heating costs increase because you need to be in your home more - you need to pay for taxis because you can't walk far or drive.

In addition to basic disability benefits there should be a whole lot of stuff that is free.

You are better of as a parent or single Mother than being disabled - the Government pay you for nothing with child tax credits and working tax credits!

In reply to ATOS VICTIMS GROUP. I agree with you. The more I find out about this evil organization ATOS and the way it carries out its "rigged" assessments the more I am convinced that this is a cull being implemented behind closed doors by a tyrannical government with Aryan-like views. Its very difficult coming to realize that this is actually happening in 21st century Britain.

Dear Stella,
Your tale is similar to mine in certain ways as are so many. The best way to deal with the problem as I have found over subsequent examinations and appeal processes is to kick up such a storm of requests for information under the Fredom of Information Act 2000, { such as the 41 page Atos complaints procedure which will help frame your complaints}, complaints about the original complaints not being dealt with within the contracted 20 day period, letters to your MP stating that your letter will be supplied to the C.A.B. and anyone else you can think of. Also send your case to the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions. Kick up a storm and frame it as I'm sure you are capable in the form of a legal deposition with references to Atos complaint codes contained within the 41 page Atos complaint procedure and every bit of supporting paperwork mentioned in the text , also to be printed in full in an eppendix. Refuse to be referred to as @the customer' as you are not: that is the DWP.
I have using these blitzkreig methods had myself placed back in the Support Group [after being told I would be fit for work within 18 months] in six weeks from the date of the WCA. Also complain about the conduct of the examiner and question their fitness for purpose as if any Atos operative receives more than 3 complaints in a 1 month priod they are in a disciplinary process: the aim being that if everybody complains then soon the entire Atos staff of examiners will be on report which will hinder attempls by Atos to appear cuddly.
Good luck

Always demand a recording as Atos will lie about what you said in assessment. Ok this is how it is, If you simply go to an assessment, you have a 95% chance of failing. FACT, ITS AUTOMATIC Now you need to ask yourself, if you fail you will have to go on JSA or appeal the decision.So lets try to skip the fail and give ourselves 95% chance of passing. Appealing an assessment fail decision is harder than appealing a decision to stop your benefits because you didn't attend assessment. Tell Atos you will only attend a recorded assessment. You will easily appeal that decision because it is at dwp level. you simply write to your local jc+ and ask for the decision to stop benefits to be reviewed and to be given another appointment which will be recorded, your benefits will be immediately restored awaiting decision . But have that letter ready even before Atos first contact. Its as simple as that. Atos relies on you not having the evidence to appeal their decision. chances are Atos won't require you to be assessed after that as they don't have all the cards, but at least you will now have a 95% chance of passing if assessment is recorded, then no further appeal will be neccercary. So which appeal would YOU prefer?

Everyone I know has been given zero points on the new assessment system, even if their medical condidtion has actually got worse since their last assessment. They say if you have zero there is no point in appeaking, which is an out and out lie. My partner put in an appeal, and the DWP said it could take a year and in the meantime they reduced his money to JSA rate. After about 3 months and a conversation with his key worker, they decided they had made a mistake and put him back on ESA, and paid him all the back-pay. So, safe for about 6 months before all this nonsense starts all over again. The moral of the tale is DO ALWAYS APPEAL. They use no medical evidence whatsoever in the intial assessment, hence the reason why they cut everyone off.

A close friend of mine attended a face to face medical assessment by Atos health professional. During this assessment my friend actually collapsed; an emergency ambulance was called and she was taken to A and E and had to stay in hospital overnight for treatment. Despite this she was still awarded no points at all and was told she would need to claim Job Seekers Allowance.
This lady has multiple physical and mental health conditions. Despite these, up until very recently, she has always worked hard and paid tax for over thirty years. On top of this she has, and still is, having to care for her elderly severely disabled parents as best she can, thus saving the state a fortune in care costs.
Her caring responsibilities mean she cannot claim JSA so she has been left with no choice but to claim carers allowance which means her income has been almost halved. All this and she is still as ill as she was prior to her assessment. Just because Atos says you are well does not mean you are miraculously cured.

i suffer with polyarthalgia which is arthritis all over my body, high blood pressure, small arteries disease, i cant use my right arm, and chronic fibromyalgia,and tmp of the jaw i cant eat properly. i was working part time and on dla. i was paying my rent ct. and way in society.i was taken off dla after a atos medical the doctor told me to shush two times and lied about the assesment. i appealed and after 18 months of severe stress and pain won my appeal, in the mean tim i had to give my job up i was to ill to travel on 3 buses to work and 3 buses back 6 hours traveling a day before i started work. i wnt to know how i can sue atos for loss of job and severepain and stress and depression. atos are accountable for all the deaths and added stress of all the people they have treated as animals

i forgot to add to my comments the next medical i attended at dwp i was awarded the highest esa and the doctor sent for a wheel chair to take me home he was discusted and said i should never have been sent for . yet the atos said there was nothinfg wrong with me

This is one of the worst piece of uniformed journalism I have ever read, have you actually read anything about ATOS and the way it treats people, many have died ,one case because it is recent, is Mrs Cecilia Burns, she had cancer and was deemed fit for work, they stopped her benefits and she died, watch channel 4's dispatches ( britain on the sick ) or panorama, then you may understand what all the fuss is about, we all know there are fraudsters and the system need's sorting out, BUT ,ATOS is treating all disabled people like scroungers and fakers it is killing people, you by your publication have given journalism a bad name, you know nothing about what torrid times the disabled are facing, I am sending copies of this reply to many different people, You are an opportunist NOT a reporter.

Son, Keith Gawain, has ME. would love to be accepted back in work. He studies to keep up his degree expertise. But cannot guarantee being fit to get to work seven days a week. no-one will employ. Now his benefits have been heavily reduced He is getting weaker - I am sure he has not enough to eat. We are stretched to help and live far away from Cardiff.
How many deaths, and suicides, can ATOP 'top up' before humanity restores these who have not the abilities, will, or help, to fight these admin ATOS bullies?

The War of Our World
No-one would have believed, in the early years of the twenty-first century, that human rights were being eroded by the power base of their own nation.
No-one could have dreamed that we were being annihilated, as someone with a disinfectant kills creatures that swarm and multiply in a drop of water.
Few men even considered the possibility of atrocities after the War. And yet, across the gulf of class, minds immeasurably greedier than ours regarded this nation with contemptuous eyes; and slowly, and surely, they drew their plans against us.

its disgusting what is happening in the uk, i was on income support,and not any more ive tryed an kill myself a few times, yet im fit for work like allt the other liars, i won my tribuneral first time round, and they start ed on me again in jan 2012 all the way throu til december, caused my sever distress , i am depressed and have many mental problems i had no money for food for a few months i have lost any wieght , my dad died and they chuck me off so i had no money and had to somehow cope with my daads death, i have left england due to this,as i cant go throu another tribuneral even thou they arnt the same as atos. the stress and anxiety would be too much for me.
i hope someone see's this

disgusting atos!so my doctor signs me off with panic attacks, anxiety issues, im on medication and currently trying psychological therapy to help myself,i went to the atos assesment and today i get my response in letter im fit for work with zero points after seeing a second rate atos (professional)!so because im not seen to be unduly anxious!had good raport and eye contact!behaved appropriately... yes this was in my about my esa essessment SO because im pleasent and didnt act all doolally IM FIT FOR WORK!!well i have worked most my life and to me it seems all esa claimants are classed as spongers by these people.so very wrong.atos is a joke organization who wouldnt acknowledge a sick person if they collapsed in there offices,you are made to feel uncomfortable the minute you sit in there offices with stern questions no friendliness or understanding.basically people you get called in and unless you have literally a week to live you will be fit for work on the words of the proffesional(even tho they tell you they do not make the decisions but what these people actually write up in there assesments and post to dwp they most certainly do and they do it very very craftily.so lets some it up ATOS YOU ARE A DISGRACE TO THE MEDICAL PROFFESION BUT HEY ITS ALL ABOUT THE MONEY CORRECT.

These scumbags should be sentenced to life imprisonment for what they're doing - and so with them those in government who have colluded with this callous company. Unfortunately ATOS are not the only ones attacking benefits in this repugnant manner - only worthy of criminal thugs - the local councils have now jumped on the band wagon - devising benefit rules arbitrarily and cashing in on the new rent & council tax capping introduced by idiot Cameron. They're now adding rent free weeks as extra income so that they can take more council tax from claimants on benefits - as far as I was aware the rent free weeks didn't actually exist in reality because that rent was added to the remaining rent for the rest of the year - so in fact the weekly rent is an average calculated over the course of the year - something really stinks about this and I shall be pursuing it. This government is far worse than Thatchers government - at least she wasn't an out & out crook - these Tory toffs are no better than organized criminal thugs - I'm not going to express what I'd really like to do to these pigs on this page - but they're the worst government I've ever had the misfortune to experience living under.

I too have had horrendous treatment by Atos the last being they 'lost' my form and I then had my benefits stopped completely. I have not had any form of income since Augustlast year, only help from my pensioner mother has seen me through. What amazes me, is the fact an occupational therapist who assessed me can over rule my doctor and consultant and assess I am fit for work. They both say it is dangerous for me to work (driving) as i do not have full use of my right arm, but hey ATOS do not care about me or, obviously, the general public. This practise wil continue until we are all dead and they will have no remorse whatsoever.

About the blog

Andrew Penman and Nick Sommerlad form the Daily Mirror's Investigations team. They write a weekly column in the Mirror every Thursday and they're here to help uncover the scams, and expose the people behind them. They won the Cudlipp Award for campaigning popular journalism at the 2010 British Press Awards.